The Book Of Isaiah. Day 100, The Devastation Of The Earth, Part One

So far in the book of Isaiah we have studied prophecies against the ancient enemies of the descendants of Jacob and we have studied prophecies against the descendants of Jacob. Now, instead of naming particular nations and tribes, Isaiah foresees judgment falling upon the entire world.

There have been and will continue to be periods of judgment up until the last days: judgments against the Lord's people for idolatry in the Bible days, judgments against the wicked idolaters of other nations, judgments against those who have persecuted the Lord's people. But what is primarily in view here is the final day of judgment.

Isaiah says, "See, the Lord is going to lay waste the earth and devastate it; He will ruin its face and scatter its inhabitants---it will be the same for priest as for people, for the master as for his servant, for the mistress as for her servant, for seller as for buyer, for borrower as for lender, for debtor as for creditor. The earth will be completely laid waste and totally plundered. The Lord has spoken His word." (Isaiah 24:1-3)

The nations that existed in Isaiah's day were going to experience some devastation, to be sure, and in that sense the prophecy has been partly fulfilled. The known world of his day was going to fall under the rule of powerful empires, such as the Assyrian Empire, then the Neo-Babylonian Empire, then the Medo-Persian Empire, then the Greek Empire, then the Roman Empire. But a larger picture is also in view here and Isaiah's prophecy won't find its complete fulfillment until the end of days when the Lord judges all the wickedness that has ever taken place upon the earth.

Isaiah makes it clear that this judgment is due to wickedness. "The earth dries up and withers, the world languishes and withers, the heavens languish with the earth. The earth is defiled by its people; they have disobeyed the laws, violated the statutes and broken the everlasting covenant. Therefore a curse consumes the earth; its people must bear their guilt. Therefore earth's inhabitants are burned up, and very few are left." (Isaiah 24:4-6)

The Lord created the earth in a perfect condition. But when man fell from grace, his sin brought a curse upon the earth, as we studied in the book of Genesis. This curse is why we must work hard to make a living. This curse is why disease befalls man, animals, and plants. This curse is why accidents occur. This curse is why death exists. We have all experienced the effects of this curse but in the end times the curse is going to reach its ultimate point---because that is when sin will reach its ultimate point---and the Lord is going to pour out His wrath such as never before. 

In the coming days we will be studying Isaiah 24 in conjunction with other passages of Scripture regarding the time known as the Great Tribulation and the final judgment. But I want to conclude today's study session by looking at Isaiah's statement that the people "must bear their guilt". He is talking about unrepentant people. He is not talking about the people who have placed their trust in the Lord Jesus Christ and who have been redeemed by the sacrifice He made. Those of us who are saved by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ are not the ones in view here, for Christ has borne our guilt! 

We need not be overcome with anxiety when we study end times prophecy. The dreadful woes pronounced upon mankind and upon the earth in those days are pronounced against those who have rejected the Lord. You and I, as believers, are to be looking for Christ to appear to call us up to be with Him. We are not to be fearfully looking about us for signs that the end of days is near. We are to be listening for the Bridegroom to call our names, not listening for bad news.

The Book Of Isaiah. Day 99, A Prophecy Against Tyre, Part Four

We conclude Chapter 23 today and Isaiah's prophecy against the ancient seaport city of Tyre of the Phoenicians.

Isaiah concluded yesterday's passage by telling the the ships of Tarshish to wail because the seaport had been destroyed. Now he goes on to say, "At that time Tyre will be forgotten for seventy years, the span of a king's life." (Isaiah 23:15a)

Scholars are divided in their opinions as to which period of time is indicated by the above passage. Some say the seventy years refers to the seventy years during which the Neo-Babylonian Empire held control over the region. When we arrive at the book of Jeremiah we will find the Lord predicting that the Babylonians would hold the people of Judah captive for seventy years, which corresponded with the years during which Babylon enjoyed a revival of fortunes. Others think it has to do with the arrival of Christianity to that region during the New Testament era---that the restored fortunes mentioned later in our chapter have to do with the way many people in the region accepted the gospel message. I tend to lean toward the first explanation but we simply don't know for certain. What we do know is that since the Lord gave a precise number of years, whatever He had in mind actually did take place within the span of seventy years, for He doesn't say things He doesn't mean. 

What happens when the seventy years are up? "But at the end of these seventy years, it will happen to Tyre as in the song of the prostitute: 'Take up a harp, walk through the city, you forgotten prostitute; play the harp well, sing many a song, so that you will be remembered.'" (Isaiah 23:15b-16) Many scholars believe Isaiah is quoting a song that actually existed in his day. In yesterday's passage we found him referring to the region of Phoenicia as a "virgin" and we discussed the Bible's use of this term for cities or nations that had never before been conquered. We will find the Lord referring to Israel and Judah as "virgins" as we continue moving through the books of the prophets. He uses this term when predicting the fall of Israel and Judah because those nations have never fallen before. But Tyre will fall and perhaps that is why the Lord now calls her a "prostitute" during her post-fall years. Or perhaps He uses this term because the people of Tyre served other gods, for the Lord equates idolatry with prostitution since it involves people selling themselves out and selling themselves short by forsaking Him (being unfaithful to Him) and giving themselves to idols.

The region of Tyre will once again become commercially successful. "At the end of seventy years, the Lord will deal with Tyre. She will return to her lucrative prostitution and will ply her trade with all the kingdoms on the face of the earth." (Isaiah 23:17) This verse indicates that the scholars who think the restoration of Tyre is a reference to Christianity may be mistaken. I don't think the Lord would call it "returning to prostitution" if there had been a widescale forsaking of idolatry there. I think that, when Tyre rebuilds, the things that go on there will mostly be the things that went on in the past: there will be a focus on worldly things.

But that doesn't mean that Tyre will profit only herself. The Lord is going to somehow use the wealth of Tyre to profit those who are His and possibly also that He will use the seaport and trade routes to spread the gospel message in later times. Our chapter ends with a statement that cannot be explained to the satisfaction of theologians or laymen but, as with anything the Lord says, we can be sure it happened exactly as He said it would. "Yet her profit and her earnings will be set apart for the Lord; they will not be stored up or hoarded. Her profits will go to those who live before the Lord, for abundant food and fine clothes." (Isaiah 23:18) 

Although we don't know exactly when and how the Lord used the profits of Tyre to benefit His people, the Lord has always been able to provide for His people and He has often plundered the wicked in order to do so. He is more than capable of taking things intended for evil by those who are wicked and using them for the good of His children.

The Book Of Isaiah. Day 98, A Prophecy Against Tyre, Part Three

Isaiah has been predicting the fall of the great city of Tyre and its prosperous seaport, as well as the fall of many other wealthy and magnificent cities of Phoenicia.

"Till your land as they do along the Nile, daughter Tarshish, for you no longer have a harbor." (Isaiah 23:10) Tarshish means "smelting place" and they made some fine metalworks there. Tarshish was a very prosperous seaport along the Mediterranean but it too would suffer destruction. Not only that, but the people of Tarshish could no longer travel to and from the seaport of Tyre. Isaiah says, "You might as well become farmers. You won't be able to transport any fine works made by your artisans. This line of commerce will be cut off. Till the soil and plant crops instead."

The destruction Isaiah foresees won't come for a while. The region of Phoenicia will first be attacked by the Assyrian Empire, then later by the Neo-Babylonian Empire, then what remained of the seaport of Tyre will be practically demolished by the Greek Empire. But the prophet speaks of the downfall of the great cities of that region as if it has already happened because he knows it will happen. "The Lord has stretched out His hand over the sea and made its kingdoms tremble. He has given an order concerning Phoenicia that her fortresses be destroyed. He said, 'No more of your reveling, Virgin Daughter Sidon, now crushed! Up, cross over to Cyprus; even there you will find no rest.'" (Isaiah 23:11-12)

In the Bible we often find nations that have never been conquered referred to as "virgins". Sidon was a powerful ancient city but it will not be able to prevent the Lord's judgment against it from coming true. It will be invaded and plundered.

"Look at the land of the Babylonians, this people that is now of no account! The Assyrians have made it a place of desert creatures; they raised up their siege towers, they stripped its fortresses bare and turned it into a ruin. Wail, you ships of Tarshish; your fortress is destroyed!" (Isaiah 23:13-14) Isaiah says, "Look at how the Assyrian Empire conquered Babylon! Don't think you will be able to defend yourself any better than Babylon did. The same fate will befall you."

We know from history that, in time, the Neo-Babylonian Empire arose and threw off the shackles of Assyria and that Assyria ceased to be a great empire. But that doesn't mean Phoenicia's troubles are behind it after Babylon rises to power; Babylon will set its sights on the region of Tyre, Sidon, Tarshish, and other great maritime cities in that part of the world. 

Isaiah, by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, views these coming events and speaks with the authority of absolute certainty when he states that they will happen exactly the way the Lord says they will happen. I don't know whether Isaiah knew which of these events might happen in his lifetime or in the lifetimes of his listeners, but he knows that every word the Lord speaks is going to come true, whether it happens in a year or in a hundred years or in a thousand years or in ten thousand years. We are living in an era when we are able to look back through history and see that everything Isaiah predicted against the ancient cities of his day has come true.

The Book Of Isaiah. Day 97, A Prophecy Against Tyre, Part Two

We began Chapter 23 on Friday with Isaiah's prophecy against the prosperous seaport of Tyre. He spoke of how the harbor would be destroyed and how the nations that did their trade there would wail over its fate.

He continues with that theme today. "Cross over to Tarshish; wail, you people of the island. Is this your city of revelry, the old, old city, whose feet have taken her to settle in far-off lands?" (Isaiah 23:6-7) Tyre would be attacked by both Assyria and Babylon but the primary fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecy that the people would be taken to settle in far-off lands would occur during the time of Alexander the Great. Alexander sold 30,000 of them into slavery to other nations.

Why will this happen to the ancient seaport city? Isaiah provides the answer. "Who planned this against Tyre, the bestower of crowns, whose merchants are princes, whose traders are renowned in the earth? The Lord Almighty planned it, to bring down her pride in all her splendor and to humble all who are renowned on the earth." (Isaiah 23:8-9)

This is the Lord's judgment. The Tyrians reveled in the works of their own hands, not in the works of the Lord. They worshiped idols, not the one true God. Their idols weren't only the type we typically think of, such as graven images, but they were also the idols of wealth and prestige. They were lifted up in pride over everything they had achieved, not giving any glory to the God without whom they wouldn't even exist. They believed they were too big to fall, but that is not true of any nation. There are many verses in the Bible about how the Lord hates pride and about how He gives grace to the humble. The Lord blesses those who bless Him. The Lord honors those who honor Him. The Lord lifts up those who humble themselves but the Lord humbles those who are lifted up in pride in themselves.

Not only will the Lord humble proud and idolatrous Tyre but, through the judgment He sends upon Tyre, He will humble the proud and idolatrous nations that profited through their trade in this seaport city. This is why Isaiah said in verse 9 that the Lord would bring down the pride of Tyre and "humble all who are renowned on the earth". Tyre made itself prosperous by worldly means and it enabled many other nations and tribes to prosper. But none of them acknowledged God as Lord, and in that sense they were destitute. 

The Lord Jesus Christ once asked in a sermon, "What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?" (Mark 8:36) Many idolaters have done well for themselves, materially speaking. Many idolaters have made great names for themselves in a worldly sense. But they've forfeited their souls and there is nothing worth missing out on salvation! The citizens of ancient Tyre thought they had it all but they were like the wealthy apostate church of the end times, about which the Lord Jesus said: "You say, 'I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.' But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked." (Revelation 3:17)

I am not stating that it is a sin to succeed in our careers or to make a good living for our families. The Lord enjoys giving gifts to His children and if we have made any wealth by living according to God's principles, by working hard, and by honoring Him, the Bible is not saying that we are destitute in spirit because we have made some money. The words of Isaiah's prophecy and the words of the Lord Jesus regarding wealth are spoken about those who have made wealth their god. They serve money, not the Lord. They have likely done some ungodly things in order to make their money but even if they haven't, they value money above everything else. This is idolatry.

The Book Of Isaiah. Day 96, A Prophecy Against Tyre, Part One

Chapter 23 contains a prophecy against Tyre, a city that lay north of Israel, a city that was a major maritime power in the days of Isaiah. It was the most important Phoenician city in that era. As Isaiah predicts, it will be conquered. It will be conquered first by Assyria, then by Babylon, then by Greece. The prophecy against Tyre is quite long and it will take us several days to study it.

Tyre was a symbol of great commerce in its day. It was a symbol of grandeur and prosperity. It was also a city whose citizens did not acknowledge God as Lord, for they were idolaters. You may recall that the wicked Queen Jezebel was a Phoenician and that she influenced her husband, King Ahab of Israel, to forsake the Lord entirely for the worship of Baal. She was the daughter of a king of Sidon; Sidon and Tyre are often mentioned together in the Bible because they were both major Phoenician cities, with Sidon being the oldest. Later in this chapter we will find Sidon being referenced as the "mother" of Tyre. 

"A prophecy against Tyre: Wail, you ships of Tarshish! For Tyre is destroyed and left without house or harbor. From the land of Cyprus word has come to them." (Isaiah 23:1) Isaiah foresees the destruction of this great commercial seaport city. The lands that trade with Tyre, such as Cyprus, wail at the news that the seaport has been destroyed. Isaiah predicts a time when there will be no harbor from which or to which ships can travel. 

"Be silent, you people of the island and you merchants of Sidon, whom the seafarers have enriched. On the great waters came the grain of the Shihor; the harvest of the Nile was the revenue of Tyre, and she became the marketplace of the nations." (Isaiah 23:2-3) Shihor and the Nile are both references to the goods of Egypt which were brought into the ports of Tyre. Shihor is believed to have been a river of Egypt or a branch of the Nile. Where will the Egyptians sell their goods now? How will their fortunes fare without the great seaport of Tyre?

When destruction comes upon Tyre, Isaiah foresees Sidon "disowning" that city as if Sidon did not give birth to it. He sees the people of Sidon taking a step back and distancing themselves from the city which has been met with such a sad and shocking fate. "Be ashamed, Sidon, and you fortress of the sea, for the sea has spoken: 'I have neither been in labor nor given birth; I have neither reared sons nor brought up daughters.'" (Isaiah 23:4) 

It's a strange but somewhat common human reaction for people to distance themselves from those who have experienced great calamity, as if this prevents them from meeting with sad circumstances as well. I recall my mother saying, after the death of my father, that it seemed like all of her still-married friends were suddenly keeping their distance from her as if they thought widowhood was contagious. Sometimes people will stand back from those who have gone through a tragedy, even when the tragedy wasn't anything they brought upon themselves. People are even more likely to distance themselves from those who have done something to cause their misfortunes. The people of Sidon probably thought the people of Tyre had "offended the gods" and brought tragedy upon themselves, or perhaps they thought the people of Tyre did a poor job of defending the city. The people of Sidon likely blamed the citizens of Tyre for their misfortune and for bringing misfortune upon others who would no longer be able to use this much-needed seaport.

The truth is that the people of Tyre did bring calamity upon themselves by living in idolatry, pride, greed, excess, and immorality. Isaiah is going to make it very clear as we move on through this chapter that the fall of Tyre is the judgment of God, saying that this was the plan of God to humble the Tyrians.

The Book Of Isaiah. Day 95, A Prophecy Against Jerusalem, Part Seven

We are concluding Chapter 22 today with a prophecy that is twofold, as we discussed yesterday. In Isaiah's day it involved a man named Eliakim who would be promoted to overseer of the king's household. But this prophecy also involves a future day when the Messiah will reign over the earth.

The Lord stated His intention to remove Shebna as the king's top official and to replace him with Eliakim. The Lord said He would place upon Eliakim's shoulder the key to the house of David. We discussed the ancient custom of wearing the keyring pinned to the shoulder of the robe. The man who wore the keyring had authority over all that belonged to the king. He could lock or unlock doors that no one else except his master could lock or unlock.

The same is true of the Lord Jesus Christ. He will be given a position of top authority. He will be able to lock or unlock things that no one else except God the Father can lock or unlock. 

The Lord Jesus Christ, in the revelations He made to the Apostle John, took this passage of Isaiah and applied it to Himself, saying: "These are the words of Him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What He opens no one can shut, and what He shuts no one can open." (Revelation 3:7)

When the Lord spoke of how He would depose Shebna from his position and put Eliakim in his place, He said that Shebna would die in a foreign land and that the tomb he carved out for himself and his progeny would not be used by them. In contrast, the position of Eliakim will be firmly established. "I will drive him like a peg into a firm place; he will become a seat of honor for the house of his father. All the glory of his family will hang on him: its offspring and offshoots---all its lesser vessels, from the bowls to all the jars." (Isaiah 22:23-24) 

In ancient times people often hung cooking pots and jars on pegs. This is a picture of the family of Eliakim being able to look to him as an example of godly leadership. The same cannot be said for the untrustworthy and prideful Shebna. About him the Lord says this: "'In that day,' declares the Lord Almighty, the peg driven into the firm place will give way; it will be sheared off and will fall, and the load hanging on it will be cut down.'" (Isaiah 22:25) As we discussed earlier in the week, Shebna was concerned with magnifying and exalting himself; therefore, he will be removed and another will take his place---Eliakim who is concerned with magnifying and exalting the Lord.

When we push the Lord aside and exalt ourselves, He must humble us. But when we honor Him, he honors us. 

The Book Of Isaiah. Day 94, A Prophecy Against Jerusalem, Part Six

At the end of Chapter 22 we find Isaiah making predictions about two different men. In yesterday's study his prophecy was about Shebna, a top official of King Hezekiah. This was a negative prophecy, for Shebna was a man filled with pride. Today's prophecy is a positive one that regards another top official of King Hezekiah: a man named Eliakim.

In yesterday's text we found the Lord stating that Shebna would be removed from his position. Today's text picks up where that left off by beginning with the words "in that day". The Lord is going to promote someone else to Shebna's position after He deposes Shebna.

"In that day I will summon My servant, Eliakim son of Hilkiah. I will clothe him with your robe and fashion your sash around him and hand your authority over to him. He will be a father to those who live in Jerusalem and to the people of Judah." (Isaiah 22:20-21) 

In the book of 2 Kings and later in the book of Isaiah we find Eliakim the son of Hilkiah referred to as "the palace administrator". The Bible provides no details to us about how Shebna was deposed and how he ended up dying in a foreign land (as the Lord said he would in yesterday's passage) or why Eliakim was given all the king's trust and all the political authority that had once belonged to Shebna. We can safely conclude that Eliakim was a more godly and trustworthy man than Shebna and that he was more worthy of being in the king's inner circle. The fact that he will "be a father" to the people indicates that he set a good, godly, and wise example for them to follow. Whereas yesterday we learned that Shebna was mainly concerned with magnifying and exalting himself, Eliakim was mainly concerned with magnifying and exalting the Lord. 

This next segment is believed by many scholars to be a twofold prophecy, and I agree. They state that it concerns Eliakim---the man who was given authority over King Hezekiah's household---and that it concerns the Messiah who will be given authority over everything that belongs to the Lord.

"I will place on his shoulder the key to the house of David; what he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open." (Isaiah 22:22) It was the custom for the man in charge of the king's palace to pin a keyring to the shoulder of his robe. The key (or keys) attached to the keyring opened every door that belonged to the king: all the doors in king's palace and all the doors in the king's storehouses. Anyone who saw the keyring pinned to the man's garment would immediately know he held a high position of trust and authority in the kingdom. Only this man could open and close the doors of the king. If he unlocked a door, no one else could lock it back. If he locked a door, no one else could open it.

When the Lord says that He will place on Eliakim's shoulder the key to the house of David, He is saying that He will see to it that Eliakim is elevated to this high position in the king's household. Since the king is descended from David, the Lord refers to the palace (and everything associated with it) as the house of David.

But an even greater promise is being made here than that which is being made to the man named Eliakim. In our next study session we will find the Lord Jesus Christ applying this prophecy to Himself in a passage from the book of Revelation. We will take a look at how God the Father plans to place on the shoulder of God the Son the keys to the kingdom: the eternal kingdom.